LifeLabs workers strike for better pay, sick leave in Simcoe County
Around 120 LifeLabs workers from across Simcoe County are taking strike action after negotiations for a new contract broke down this week.
Both parties had been at the bargaining table for over a year but were unable to reach an agreement before the 12:01 a.m. deadline on Thursday.
"We are out because we need to make sure that we are equal," said Renee Aiken Kearsley, OPSEU/SEFPO Local 389 President. "All we're asking Charles Brown (LifeLabs CEO), is to be equal with the non-unionized employees."
Unionized LifeLabs workers in Simcoe County claim they are being underpaid in comparison to workers at other locations across the province, making as much as $5.50 less per hour to start.
"The employer is making a clear choice to prioritize profits over workers and patient care," Aiken Kearsley said.
CTV News reached out to LifeLabs for an interview but was provided a statement instead.
"LifeLabs is committed to open, constructive, and respectful negotiations with OPSEU Local 389 to reach a fair and mutually beneficial agreement," it read. "We respect the negotiation process and the rights of our employees to pursue their interests. We remain open to further discussions and will continue to work diligently with OPSEU to find a resolution that is fair and aligned with the values of our organization."
- Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox
A dozen locations in Barrie, Orillia, Collingwood and Wasaga Beach are impacted by the strike.
The employer said some are closed due to job action, but that "most LifeLabs Patient Service Centres" would remain open.
According to the union, "scab workers" have been brought in to take up the duties of striking members.
"I believe we are very close to getting a deal," said Greg Mcveigh, a negotiator for the union. "Unfortunately, the employer is still trying to get concessions out of our members."
Mcveigh said LifeLabs wants to scale back sick leave for unionized members in particular.
"We have high incidents of cancer in this workplace, 10 per cent of our members have cancer," Mcveigh added. "This industry itself has high cancer because of the chemicals and swabs, things like that that they use. "It's pretty tough to go to workers and ask them to give a concession on your sick plan when 10 per cent of the work force has cancer."
Workers will remain on the picket lines daily until a tentative deal can be reached.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Signs of Alzheimer’s were everywhere. Then his brain improved
Blood biomarkers of telltale signs of early Alzheimer’s disease in the brain of his patient, 55-year-old entrepreneur Simon Nicholls, had all but disappeared in a mere 14 months.
Flammable kids' sleepwear, salmonella-contaminated chips: Here are the recalls of this week
Health Canada and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency issued recalls for various items this week, including kids' bassinets, chips, and stoves. Here's what to watch out for.
Lyon-bound Air Canada Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner from Montreal turns back midflight due to pressurization alert
Passengers heading from Montreal to Lyon, France on Friday were forced to return home and depart the next day after a pressurization indication was detected in flight.
U.S. ambassador 'not aware' of any plans for Trudeau-Trump meeting
Canada's Ambassador to the United States says she's 'not aware' of any plans for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to meet with former U.S. president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump before the November American election.
Sentencing trial set to begin for Florida man who executed 5 women at a bank in 2019
Zephen Xaver walked into a central Florida bank in 2019, fatally shot five women and then called police to tell them what he did. Now 12 jurors will decide whether the 27-year-old former prison guard trainee is sentenced to death or life without parole.
'How do you get hypothermia in a prison?' Records show hospitalizations among Virginia inmates
The Virginia State Police investigator seemed puzzled about what the inmate was describing: "unbearable" conditions at a prison so cold that toilet water would freeze over and inmates were repeatedly treated for hypothermia.
The secret Italian lakes that most tourists don't know about
Italy has dozens of secret smaller lakes that boast superb scenery, unknown to mass tourism, where locals get together on day trips and enjoy picnics.
Canadian immigration asks medical worker fleeing Gaza if he treated Hamas fighters
Lawyers are questioning Canada’s approach to screening visa applications for people in Gaza with extended family in Canada after one applicant, a medical worker, was asked whether he had treated members of Hamas.
Walmart, Costco refusing to sign grocery code of conduct 'untenable': industry minister
Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne says it's 'untenable' for 'smaller players' like Walmart and Costco to delay signing on to the government- and industry-led grocery code of conduct, now that industry giant Loblaw has agreed to do so.